Agreed. I've found that Spridgets, given reasonable care, are very
rust-resistant as they came from the factory. Just keeping the
undercarriage free of road crud build-up (which tends to hold a
corrosive-laden mix of moisture against the body, which will eventually
penetrate any coating), will keep the car rock-solid. Allowing floors to
dry, by taking the floor mats out, and circulating air through the cockpit,
is critical to keeping floors solid. Door posts are a bit of a problem, due
to their lack of ventilation capability. I suspect that moisture tends to
enter past windshield post seals, and find it's way to the bottom, atop the
sill. We've all seen the inevitable result.
One of the things I've missed, for the past 20 years, is Spridget driving in
the winter. With all that is available to us, now, in the form of
rust-proofing options, and replacement panels, I'm tempted to build myself a
foul weather Spridget, complete w/factory hard top, to enjoy on snow and ice
covered roads.
Bud Osbourne
-----Original Message-----
From Wm. Severin Thompson [mailto:wsthompson at thicko.com]
Sent: Monday, December 26, 2005 8:20 AM
To: bugeye@yahoogroups.com; 'Bud Osbourne'
Cc: Spridgets@autox.team.net; midgetsprite@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: Bugeye Group..... Re: Paint
Geoff Healey was very pleased with the paint delivered on the early Sprites.
Original, unmolested Sprites show that their paint was applied to a very
high standard... very level. It must have been decent paint, as the 2
original paint bugeyes I have still buff to a very nice gloss. It was far
superior to the paint on the big Healeys.
Most Sprites, whether due to their size, or the driving style of their
owners, have suffered accident damage... often multiples. In my experience,
the majority of the body shops of the day did shoddy repair work... poor
preparation, poor color match, etc. You couldn't buy the color packs of
today, or insist on the same paint manufacturer. There weren't color
scanners, and often paint matching was an art mastered by very few.
More often than not, rotted floors were the result of torn or missing soft
tops that soaked carpets, and under layment and were
left to rot.
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